Independent school call for poor

[Albus]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/7859678.stm

Children from poorer backgrounds should receive up to £10,000 in credit to allow them to go to independent schools, a think tank has suggested.

Reform Scotland said that despite a major increase in funding for education over the past decade, many children were failed by their local schools.

The Parent Power report said the move could improve progress for pupils.

The Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association said the report was "ill-informed and misguided".

The report highlights a 2007 report from the Organisation of Economical Development and Co-operation (OECD) which highlighted many strengths of Scottish education but suggested disadvantaged children do better in the schools of many other countries.

It maintains young people in Scotland would make more progress in schools which are not run by their local councils. It proposes groups of parents and teachers set up independent schools with fees paid by the state.

Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden are among the countries where similar schools are well established. In the US it has been taken up by many African American families who felt their children were underachieving at state schools.

Under the proposals from Reform Scotland, parents would be given credit equal to the cost of educating a child at a local state school, which they could spend on the independent school of their choice. Currently costs range from £3,500 to £10,000.

Children from families on benefits and those with special needs would receive extra credit to ensure schools could meet their needs.

Parents would not be allowed to top up the credit to pay for a more expensive school.

The scheme would be initially targeted at children on free school meals but after two years rolled out to children from every background.

Geoff Mawdsley, director of Reform Scotland, said there are many good schools in Scotland but there are not enough of them.

He said: "This is all about creating an education system that extends opportunity and promotes social mobility.

"This is not something that can happen overnight.

"But what we are putting forward is a long-term strategy that will benefit countless numbers of children who unless we make radical changes will be failed by an education system that does not meet their needs."

The report suggests giving parents more choice would encourage local schools to try harder. It highlights a second OECD report in 2007 which suggested schools which have to compete for students are linked to better results.

And it says middle or high income families have choice at present as they can afford to pay for private school fees or tutors, or move to the catchment areas of schools they perceive to be better.
'No large variation'

Less well-off families trying to opt out of their local school have to make placing requests. About a fifth of parents of children starting primary one go down this route and some are successful.
The Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association dismissed the report's findings.

Jim Docherty, acting general secretary, added: "The concept of good and bad schools is false. There is no large variation in the quality of Scottish schools.

"This competition suggests the English education system and an attempt to reduce costs."

Commenting on the think tank's proposal that individual local councils should be allowed to deviate from national pay scales to tackle any teacher shortages, he said: "This would lead to a breakdown in industrial relations."